Playing cards have been in existence for many years. Although there are many types of playing cards that are played in many different types of games, the most common type of playing cards consists of 52 cards, divided out into four different suits (namely Spades, Hearts, Diamonds and Clubs) which is printed or indicated on one side or the face of each card. In the standard deck, each of the four suits consists of 13 cards, numbered either two through ten, or lettered A (Ace), K (King), Q (Queen), or J (Jack), which is also printed or indicated on each card. Thus each card will contain on its face a suit indication along with a number or letter indication. The King, Queen, and Jack usually also include some sort of design on the face of the card, and may be referred to as picture cards.
In some cases, the 52 card standard playing deck also contains a number of extra cards, sometimes referred to as jokers, that may have some use or meaning depending on the particular game being played with the deck.
Many different games can be played using a standard 52 card deck. The game being played with the standard deck of cards may include other items, such as game boards, chips, etc., or the game being played may only need the playing card deck itself. In most of the games played using a standard deck of cards, a value is assigned to each card. The value may differ for different games. Usually, the card value begins with the number two card as the lowest value and increases as the numbers increase through ten, followed in order of increasing value with the Jack, Queen, King and Ace. In some games the Ace may have a lower value than the two, and in games where a particular card is determined to be wild, or have any value, that card may have the greatest value of all. For example, in card games where deuces, or twos, are wild, the player holding a playing card containing a two can use that two as any other card, such that a nine and a two would be the equivalent of two nines.
Further, the four different suits indicated on the cards may have a particular value depending on the game. Under game rules where one suit, i.e. Spades, has more value than another suit, i.e. Hearts, the seven of Spades may have more value than the seven of Hearts.
It is easy to visualize that using the different card quantity and suit values, many different games can be played. In certain games, it is the combination of cards that one player obtains that determines whether or not that player has defeated the other player or players. Usually, the more difficult the combination is to obtain, the more value the combination has, and the player who obtains the more difficult combination (also taking into account the value of the cards) wins the game. For instance in the game of Poker, each player may ultimately receive five cards. The player who obtains three cards having similar numbers on their face, i.e. the four of Hearts, four of Diamonds and four of Clubs, will defeat the player having only two cards with the same numerical value, i.e. the King of Spades and the King of Hearts. However, the player with five cards that all contain Clubs, commonly known as a flush, will defeat the player with the same three of a kind described above.
It is easy to see that many different games can be played using the increasing value of the cards and the different combination of those cards. However, there are a limited number of combinations that can be created with an ordinary deck of playing cards.